An Interview With YEV
YEV is a hardworking, dedicated musician with an incredibly unique voice in the local scene, YEV moves between folk, rock, idie, and soul influences in his work. He spoke with Cedar Commissions program manager, Robert Lehmann, about his Ukrainian roots; his work channeling the stories from refugees from the Russian invasion; and growing into self-confidence as an artist working in a group.
You can hear YEV perform live Friday, February 9th at The Cedar Commissions concert.
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Could you tell me a little bit about your roots, whatever that means to you?
I immigrated to the United States from Ukraine at a young age, which shaped much of my life and artistic journey. As an artist, I combine my Ukrainian roots with my love of American music and its many genres, ranging from folk rock to soul, indie pop, and world music. After a few years of trying to identify that which spoke most clearly to myself and others and, most recently with the help of the Cedar Cultural Center, I have embraced a mission of transmuting pain into hope.
Can you tell us a little bit about your Cedar Commission's work?
The theme of my work is to give voice to the untold stories of war refugees and veterans — stories that resonate with the universal themes of loss, hope, and the enduring human spirit. By focusing on the Ukrainian people, I will try to show how even everyday people can be incredibly strong and resilient, even though much of the Western World has been surprised by Ukraine’s tenacity. This project tries to acknowledge the impact of war in a more intimate and empathetic way than is generally presented by the media. I want to help the global community to better understand the Ukrainian psyche by singing about our shared humanity.
Can you talk a little bit about what your process has been?
Honestly, this project has entirely changed my perspective on life and the things that I felt were the most important. Indeed, the work continues to shape me as an artist and as an individual.
Originally, I planned to interview local Ukrainian refugees and war veterans. But each interview kept speaking to me on a deeper and deeper emotional level than I anticipated. It took a lot longer to process everything I had heard. It's one thing to hear about war on the news, but it's another thing to hear stories from those who have actually lived to tell about it. These stories deeply influenced the themes, tone, and the direction of my project, driving home the reality of their struggle and incredible resilience in surviving these events.
I began to compose the songs after taping the interviews. Almost immediately, certain melodies and concepts just kind of came to life. It has been quite the spiritual experience — something that was surprising and unexpected for me.
what was highlighted for you? What feels most important now?
Take the story of the refugee Olha Maltseva and her family. One of the things she said to me was that prior to the war, she was just like anyone else. You know, like getting a better car, a better home, career, successes in life, right? Mostly material and status and career. But after the invasion, what brings her the most happiness in life are now the simplest of things, like being able to put her two kids to bed in a safe space. Olha’s comments were an “aha moment" for me. How important are all of these things at the end of the day? What makes one truly happy?
Hearing these stories was a most humbling experience, and it made me take a big step back. As we speak, I'm now working with a supportive and really talented group of musicians, and everyone is excited about how well it's all coming together. We all feel the power of the music, and it’s continuing to exceed my expectations.
RL: Are there things that have surprised you throughout the process? Ways that you thought that the project was going to go, but now it's shifted?
I wanted to do as much as I could with this project. My goal was to introduce as much varied Ukrainian culture as was possible. Everything from visual art, to the refugee stories, to the songs, to video, and dance. But at some point, I realized that I needed to refine the vision so as to not dilute the overall message with too many distractions.
I still plan to jump in with a little dance teaser during one of the songs. You might see me bust out some traditional Ukrainian Hopak squat kicks, so be prepared for that (haha). Now with the performance date rapidly approaching, I am focused on reeling things back a bit, so the audience can experience the full weight and impact of the stories.
What ways have you grown during this commission's process?
This project has really taken me outside of my comfort zone, and I had to jump in and learn a lot really quickly. Getting through it all has taught me that I am indeed capable of meeting such challenges and demands — and to have more faith in myself. I dove into the project headfirst and have been going nonstop throughout this period. And now that we’re entering a new year, I’ve been going through a reflective phase; for in some ways I don't really recognize myself anymore (which is a good thing).
Because of my personal connection to this war, the stakes feel really high, and that’s why I hit the ground running. It's been an incredible amount of work, but something I'm so very grateful for — and I feel empowered by the entire experience. My songwriting has taken another giant leap forward, telling stories that are more visceral and universally impactful. One of the things that I wanted to work on with my songwriting arc is to make the lyrics more engaging, and I feel like I've definitely reached that goal.
Also, it's been an interesting experience bringing in more of my Ukrainian heritage into my love of American music. I'm Ukrainian, but growing up here I was introduced to The Beach Boys and The Beatles and later fell in love with Jazz music standards. A huge fan of Billie Holiday, I also fell in love with Rhythm and Blues, and gospel music. In my growth as an artist I’ve traveled back in time to try and more deeply understand the roots of the American music I so love. I viewed these American greats as important teachers, but was also figuring out how to bring in more of my Ukrainian heritage which deepened my appreciation of my ancestral culture and history. And so part of this process had me studying more world music and listening to old traditional Ukrainian songs – stuff so old that no one really knows who wrote it.
Prior to the Cedar Commissions, I was mostly a solo singer/songwriter performer and wrote music in a way that highlighted the strengths of that format. Since the Cedar Commissions, I've made some amazing connections with musicians and together we have created a powerful, layered, and dynamic sound. I am grateful to have as part of this project Lev (of the Ukrainian Village Band), Tony, Sasha, and Elliot (a singer/songwriter called ELL). I couldn’t have asked for a better and easier group to work with. They have all added so much, and I really enjoy our practice sessions together.
It challenges you to know yourself better.
Yes; it also makes one a lot more confident in one's art, knowing that it will be interpreted by others and also that changes will be made in the live version. You start reassessing what your art truly says. What is the most important part of my message? My art is the basic melody, the lyrics, and emotion, but most importantly the mission behind it, which is to sustain hope even in the face of overwhelming challenges.
It was truly a blast to see my band members and collaborators enjoying themselves as they contributed to the project. In every instance, we were all pleasantly surprised. True testament to each of these talented musicians.
RL: It's interesting thinking about that balance between having it be a way that you want it to be as a composer and creator - I think of hyper-controlled producers like Kevin Parker of Tame Impala or Michael Angelakos of Passion Pit, just to name two. But on the other end, empowering people to bring themselves and their own creative voice to really be part of that vision. It's inviting them to be more of an active collaborator versus a passive session musician who wants to play exactly what you wrote.
YR: This is what I mean about it being a humbling experience. I think that part of what makes us artists comes from a certain level of ego, a belief that you have what it takes to create meaningful art. It’s not a bad thing, since you need a healthy amount of confidence to inspire one to take action. Still, it can be much easier to breathe when you take some of that pressure off yourself. This project has been a constant reminder to let go, to take a deep breath, and just let art happen. It's almost like there's a universal force that just wants to sing. It might not be in the way that you originally thought, but at the end of the day it's all much better.
What can audiences expect sonically or visually from your show this February?
Sonically, I’m definitely diving into both my Eastern European world and soulful American folk rock sound. If you've listened to artists like Hozier or Black Pumas, there'll be some songs that have that feel. There'll be others that are more world music sounding and still others that are rock. I'd say that Rock in general is an important genre for me.
I really like dynamics, and going through cycles. You know how when you read a story in a book. You have the hills, the ebbs and flows of the story, the peaks of it, and then it comes up to high energy points, down to low energy points — all of that’s definitely something to expect from my music. Visually, I'll have footage of a couple of the Ukrainian interviews. I wanted to put a face to the stories that we’re singing about.
What else do you want audiences to know? Anything that we didn't touch on?
I'm looking forward to sharing an emotional experience with the audience. These songs echo the struggles and triumphs of people caught in what would be a challenging chapter in anyone’s life. I'm looking forward to sharing clips from the interviews, to show that even in the midst of war and displacement, there is an unbreakable human spirit that continues to dream, love, and hope.
Before arriving at the show, I encourage the audience to come with an open heart and mind, to be prepared to experience a range of emotions from empathy, to sorrow, to hope and inspiration. And it's an invitation for reflection. I view this as more than just the performance of my songs. I hope the experience will leave each member of the attendance with a lasting impression that will hopefully spark meaningful conversation long after the final note has played.
It’s inevitably deeply tied to you. And it still will be, you know? These songs will go with you.
Yes, but it’s also well beyond me. The spirit of these kinds of projects is much bigger than any single individual. Each of the songs were deeply influenced by the themes, tone, and the direction of those who showed and shared incredible resilience in the face of terrifying reality. I want to humanize the Ukrainian struggle and to remind people that this could be you, this could be me. It's not happening on the other side of the world. It's happening to us as a whole.
Catch YEV’s performance of "Echoes of Resilience: A Ukrainian Tapestry of War and Hope" premiering live at The Cedar on Friday, February 9th as part of the Thirteenth Annual Cedar Commissions.
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The Cedar Commissions is made possible in part by a grant from The Jerome Foundation.
